NEW YORK, Jan 2, 2026, 13:36 ET — Regular session
- The Dow was modestly higher in early afternoon after opening the new year with choppy trade
- Caterpillar and Boeing led gainers, while Salesforce and Microsoft weighed
- Traders are focused on next week’s U.S. jobs and inflation data for clues on 2026 rate cuts
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 78.93 points, or 0.16%, at 48,142.22 in early afternoon trading on Friday, after swinging between 47,853.04 and 48,275.63.
The muted rise matters because it is the first full trading session of 2026, and Wall Street is trying to steady after a late-December slide. Investors are also recalibrating expectations for interest rates after the market’s year-end “Santa Claus rally” — a seasonal tendency for stocks to rise into early January — failed to gain traction.
Traders are now looking to next week’s U.S. labor and inflation readings for direction, with the Federal Reserve’s rate path back in focus. Lower rates can support stock valuations by reducing borrowing costs, but they depend on inflation continuing to cool.
In the price-weighted Dow — where higher-priced stocks have a bigger impact on the index — Caterpillar and Boeing were among the top boosts, while declines in Salesforce and Microsoft offset some of the gains. Caterpillar was up 3.85% and Boeing gained 3.35%, while Salesforce fell 3.83% and Microsoft slipped 2.38%.
Broader U.S. trading remained mixed as chip stocks outperformed while consumer discretionary names lagged, leaving the S&P 500 little changed and the Nasdaq slightly lower. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 3.4%, while Tesla fell after reporting a second consecutive annual decline in sales.
“The next Fed Chair is probably going to be much more dovish than Jerome Powell,” said Dennis Dick, chief market strategist at Stock Trader Network. Reuters
Trade policy also stayed on the radar after President Donald Trump signed a proclamation delaying planned tariff increases on upholstered furniture, kitchen cabinets and vanities for another year, the White House said.
The next near-term market test is the U.S. Employment Situation report for December, due on Friday, Jan. 9 at 8:30 a.m. ET, according to the Labor Department’s schedule.
Economists polled by Reuters expect payrolls to rise by 55,000 in December and the unemployment rate to edge up to 4.6%. Fed funds futures — derivatives tied to the policy rate — imply investors see little chance of a cut at the Fed’s late-January meeting and roughly even odds of a quarter-point cut in March.
Inflation data comes next, with the Consumer Price Index scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 13 at 8:30 a.m. ET.
Investors will also be watching the start of earnings season, with JPMorgan due to report on Jan. 13, a day that also brings the CPI release.
The Fed’s next policy meeting is scheduled for Jan. 27–28, according to the central bank’s calendar, putting fresh emphasis on how officials frame the balance between inflation and growth early in 2026.
For the rest of Friday’s session, traders are watching whether the Dow can hold above its prior close and regain the day’s highs, with rate expectations and trade headlines likely to keep intraday swings in play.
